Ballybrit Racecourse

Ballybrit Race Track, also known as Galway Racecourse, is a horse race course in County Galway, Ireland. It is located in the townland of Ballybrit, in the environs of Castlegar, just north of the N6 Bóthar na dTreabh, c.6 km northeast of Galway city.

The track has two stands, the Main Stand and Millennium Stand.

The seven-day Galway Races Festival is held here every August.

Other meetings are held here in September (2 days), early October (1 day) and over the last weekend in October (3 days).

Course information

Ballybrit is a right-handed course of about one mile and three furlongs, with a steep decline into the dip where the last two fences are situated. There is a sharp incline to the finish line.

History

The first meeting was held in 1869.[1][2]

As part of his visit to Ireland in 1979, Pope John Paul II celebrated mass at the racecourse for two hundred and eighty thousand people.[2] The then Mayor of Galway, Michéal Ó hUiginn, conferred the Freedom of Galway upon the Pontiff.

In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland, the racecourse was used as a mass vaccination centre.[3]

Notable races

Month DOW Race Name Type Grade Distance Age/Sex
July/Aug Wednesday Galway Plate Chase Handicap 2m 6f 4yo +
July/Aug Thursday Galway Hurdle Hurdle Handicap 2m 4yo +
October Sunday Ballybrit Novice Chase Chase Grade 3 2m 1f 4yo +

References

  1. ↑ "History of the Galway Festival".
  2. 1 2 "Ballybrit steeped in History". Irish Daily Mirror. 29 July 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2015 – via The Free Library.
  3. ↑ "Ireland's COVID-19 vaccination centres". 30 March 2021.

53°17′53″N 8°59′49″W / 53.298°N 8.997°W / 53.298; -8.997


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